Terry Wogan’s son has hit out at Rachel Reeves after struggling to sell his parents’ £3.75million mansion.
Mark Wogan, 51, put the sprawling 6,500 square foot family home in Buckinghamshire on the market after his mother passed away last November.
But he hasn’t received any viewings or offers for the property and blames the Chancellor for ‘killing off the housing market’.
Sir Terry Wogan and his wife, Lady Helen, bought the seven-bedroom property in 1975 and raised their children there.
Their three children – Alan, Katherine and Mark – had been set to inherit more than £1 million each from a shared split of their childhood home, almost a year after the death of their mother.
Children in Need host Wogan died of cancer aged 77 in 2016, and his wife Helen died nine years later – leaving behind an estate valued at £5million to her three children and five grandchildren.
But the iconic property, which includes views of Windsor Castle, a tennis court, and a swimming pool, has not had ‘one single person’ come to visit.
Wogan’s youngest son, Mark, said in a TalkTV interview with Mike Graham: ‘It’s interesting how you say Rachel Reeves is killing off the housing market.
‘She’s killed it already.’
Mark revealed that there had been absolutely no interest in the stunning property: ‘You’d think someone would come round, even just out of interest, thinking, ‘Oh, I’d quite like to go round and see Terry Wogan’s house.’
Mark Wogan, 51, put the sprawling 6,500 square foot family home in Buckinghamshire on the market after his mother passed away last November
The iconic property has views of Windsor Castle, a tennis court and a swimming pool – but has not had ‘one single person’ come to visit
Mark Wogan, 51, is the youngest son of broadcaster Terry Wogan and his wife Helen
‘But no one’s come to see it. No one, not one single person. That’s how dead the economy is.’
Wogan’s former family home boasts five reception rooms, a utility room, a pantry and ensuite bedrooms, and London’s Paddington Station is just a 30-minute journey away.
Mark reflected on growing up in the beautiful mansion: ‘We’re a close family, so the kitchen was central to everything.
‘Mum was a fantastic cook. Eating and talking around a table was a big part of growing up in the house.’
He added: ‘We’d also have some lovely long lunches on the terrace in the summer overlooking mum’s beloved garden.
‘It’s a thing of beauty. We’ll miss the house very much. But it’ll [give] someone a great place to raise a family.’
Terry Wogan, who hosted Wake Up to Wogan on BBC Radio 2 from 1993 to 2009, and his wife had an early tragedy in their marriage, losing their first child, Vanessa, to a heart condition after her birth in 1966.
Former fashion model Helen left £100,000 in her will in trusts for each of her five grandchildren, accessible when they turn 25, and the rest of her wealth and belongings were divided among her three surviving children.
This included tax-free gifts of £850,000 to her eldest son Alan, who was named as executor of her estate and £750,000 to daughter Katherine.
Lady Wogan, who was from Dublin, was a top Irish model in the 1960s and she met her husband while he was an up-and-coming star on Irish radio.
Between 1993 and his semi-retirement in December 2009, Sir Terry’s BBC Radio 2 breakfast show drew in an average of eight million listeners.
Following his death, the BBC renamed Radio 2’s studios Wogan House as a mark of respect.
The couple opted for Taplow after moving to the UK from Ireland to advance Terry’s career.
Sir Terry first fell in love with the village, which has around 2,000 residents, in 1969 while visiting a friend, Kits Browning – the son of Daphne du Maurier – and his wife Olive.
Sir Terry and his wife Helen then moved to the village permanently in 1975 to raise their children when the success of his Radio 2 breakfast show had already catapulted him to national stardom.
Sir Terry described it as a ‘sanctuary’ where he could escape the public gaze and came to cherish his role as a community stalwart in Buckinghamshire, where he lived for 40 years.